Oroville's retail licensing ordinance earns top tobacco control grade for the county

OROVILLE -- Oroville topped other communities in Butte County, and many throughout Northern California, in making strong efforts to curb tobacco use.

That was the announcement Wednesday from the American Lung Association, which released its annual Tobacco Control 2014 Report.

In overall grades, Oroville got a C, while Chico received a D, and Biggs, Gridley, Paradise and unincorporated areas of Butte County were all given an F.

Shelly Brantley, advocacy director for the Chico branch of the American Lung Association, said Oroville went from an F it received in one category last year to an A.

"They did that by adopting a comprehensive tobacco retailer license for the city of Oroville," said Brantley in a phone interview Wednesday.

The American Lung Association does a national report every year, giving grades to every state on tobacco control efforts.

Brantley said California is unique in that the agency grades every city and county in the state to get a broader picture of how tobacco control and prevention efforts impact the local community.

She said there is room for improvement not only in Butte County, but in Northern California.

Although Chico got an overall D grade, there were areas the city scored well. Chico gained a couple of points in some categories, but that didn't change its overall grade.

Besides the overall grade, each city was graded in three categories: smoke-free outdoor air, smokeless housing and reducing sales of tobacco products.

Chico scored high in the outdoor air category, earning a C for passing comprehensive outdoor air policies. Chico scored Ds in the other two categories.

Oroville doesn't have any outdoor air policies, so it scored an F in that category. Oroville earned an A and a D in the other two areas.

Brantley acknowledged most of Northern California appears to have "stalled" in efforts to reduce tobacco use.

"Overall, this (report) shows us the areas that have Fs don't have ordinances on the books over and above the state law in these categories," she said, adding cities such as Gridley, Biggs, Paradise and the county jurisdictions would need new laws to improve the tobacco grades.

In order for a change by a city or county to be included in the tobacco control grade, it would have to be a legislated policy.

"Voluntary policies can change over time," Brantley said. "We want to see the strength of legislated policy on the local level."

The tobacco control grade is typically for policies pertaining to all types of tobacco.

Brantley said the American Lung Association would like to see the report used as a tool or mechanism for the public to learn about how they can be protected and for elected officials to see how they can improve things.

She also said the organization is thrilled at the improvement in Oroville this year.

"The city of Oroville showed great leadership in raising its grade from an F to an A by enacting the retail tobacco licensing ordinance," she said.

The Oroville ordinance is important because it provides a mechanism to enforce age-of-sale laws, thereby reducing sales to minors, and it limits retail density to one store (selling tobacco) for every 4,000 residents, she continued.

"I would hold the city of Oroville as the example for other neighboring communities to follow, should they be interested in raising their tobacco control grade," Brantley added. "That's important because the city's intent in enacting the licensing was to promote the health and safety of the citizens."

For more information about the American Lung Association Tobacco Control 2014 Report, visit the website: http://www.lung.org/associations/states/california/advocacy/fight-/state-of-tobacco-control-2014.html.

Reach Barbara Arrigoni at 533-3136, barrigoni@orovillemr.com, or on Twitter @OMRBarbara.